Tales of a Stitcher

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Habanero

In celebration of heat, Cinco De Mayo, and all things spicy, I’d like to share with you Habanero. Okay I’m a day late on Cinco De Mayo. I should have posted this entry YESTERDAY.

But some good ideas come a day late.

My grandmother canned hot peppers for my grandfather. I remember having hot pepper eating contests with my cousin Donna. It was a rather formal event. Sitting across from each other at the dining room table, we would take turns pulling peppers out of the jar and eating them. The competition between us was fierce. Maybe that is where it all started.

I love spicy food. When we eat Thai I always order it Thai hot. They look at me as if that can’t possibly be true. But it is. Yes, this middle aged white woman can eat heat with the best of them.

I make fresh salsa almost every week. My son Ozzy and I are the only ones in the family interested in eating it. Ozzy will come home after school and say, “Did you make salsa Mom?” If the answer is yes, he settles down with a bowl of tortilla chips and a glass of milk. He, like me, enjoys the pain of a truly hot picante.

Habanero

I love the mustard with the black dot fabric. It is from the 1940s.

Mitering the red jagged stripe was a very long day of sewing.

I like the quilted rainbos in the yellow.

The back of Habanero.

A closer look at the stitiching.

More stitching.

And even more stitching.

Last look at the back of Habanero.

I think its genetic–this love of heat and spice. Sure, you might be able to increase your taste buds tolerance for peppers over the years, but for the most part you like it or not.

Fortunately, Walt can tolerate a bit of heat. I know couples where one person in the partnership completely overheats at the notion of spice–eyes watering and face flushed they flail about wailing for bread or water. I am not quite sure how their marriages work as spice is something that should be agree upon early in a relationship. Consensus on the level of heat is essential in a good marriage.

My favorite every day pepper is the Serrano. It has a Scoville rating of 10,000 to 25,000 heat units. I eat this pepper almost daily–on potatoes, eggs, pizza, tortilla chips–this is a good pepper. But my salsa is not complete without a couple of Habaneros. And some day I’m going to try a Ghost pepper.